Brazilian Judge Orders Netflix To Pull Comedy Short That Depicts Jesus As Gay

A Brazilian judge has ordered Netflix to remove a comedy short that jokingly depicts Jesus Christ as gay, NBC News reports.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, “The First Temptation of Christ” is a 40-minute comedy special from Brazilian comedy group Porta dos Fundos, which translates to “backdoor” in English. The film, which came out around Christmas time, is in Portuguese, but American viewers can watch it with English subtitles.

The comedy spoof depicts an adult Jesus and his new “friend,” Orlando, broadly hinting that the two men are in a relationship. They go to Mary and Joseph’s house for a surprise 30th birthday party for Jesus, whom Orlando refers to as “Gee.” When God shows up and declares that he, not Joseph, is actually Jesus’ father, Jesus must decide whether or not to live happily ever after with Orlando, or fulfill his duty and die for the sins of the world.

Not unlike an extended Monty Python sketch, the movie is less about grave theological import and more about broad comedy and controversial gay stereotypes. The film depicts Mary as smoking marijuana and God brags he “wiped out the dinosaurs with a fart.”

Even the title is a spoof, as it references The Last Temptation Of Christ, the controversial 1998 Martin Scorsese drama that depicts Jesus as imagining himself in sexual activities.

When “The First Temptation of Christ” was released, it captured the attention of Brazil’s Catholic and political leaders, who mostly had a negative reaction to the film. Marco Feliciano, a Brazilian politician, pastor, and congressman from São Paulo, called on churches and “good people” to “put an end” to the movie.

The film also inspired a mob to bomb the offices of its creators with Molotov cocktails. Fortunately, no one was injured in the December 23 attack.

Now, thanks to Judge Benedict Abicair, Feliciano and other offended Brazilian Catholics will get their wish. Responding to a petition by a Brazilian Catholic organization that argued that the “honor of millions of Catholics” was hurt by Netflix’s distribution of the movie in Brazil, the judge has ruled that Netflix can no longer show the film. The ruling applies only in Brazil and will be in effect until another judge potentially overturns Abicair’s decision.

This ruling comes at a time when some conservative leaders in Brazil are concerned about the future of the largely-Catholic country’s Christian values. Right-wing President Jail Bolsonaro has cut funding for art projects that he believes are hostile to Christian values and has condemned the flamboyant and sexually-suggestive Carnival celebrations.